Pet travel route
Taking a dog or cat from Bulgaria → Argentina
What the official rules ask for on this route, for a family pet travelling with its owner. Enter your travel date and your pet’s details to turn it into a dated checklist.
How early to start
3 weeks
if your pet has no microchip or rabies vaccination yet (the least time the official waiting periods allow)
No fixed wait
if it is already microchipped and vaccinated
Counted only from the officially fixed waiting periods. Vet, lab and paperwork appointment times are on top, so start earlier.
What your dog or cat needs
Taking a dog or cat out of an EU country (national procedure not yet verified): we summarised this from a short or older official page and it is still under review, so it may be incomplete.
Paperwork
International Veterinary Certificate (CVI) or legalised passport
Your pet needs a CVI issued, signed and stamped by the veterinary authority of the country it comes from (one of its languages must be Spanish), or a valid official passport carrying the same health information, endorsed by the veterinary authority before boarding (English is accepted as the only alternative language besides Spanish). It is valid for 60 calendar days from issue, as long as the rabies vaccination is still valid on the day your pet enters.
Details and the official words
“deben contar con el Certificado Veterinario Internacional (CVI) o con Pasaporte oficial legalizado”
“Uno de los idiomas del CVI debe ser el español.”
“El CVI o el Pasaporte oficial legalizado son válidos por 60 (sesenta) días corridos desde su emisión o legalización para ingresar a la Argentina con su perro o gato, siempre que la vacuna antirrábica se encuentre vigente el día del ingreso.”
Vet exam
Health certificate from an authorised vet
A vet authorised in the country of origin certifies that your pet is clinically healthy, shows no signs of parasites and is fit to travel. It is issued within the 10 days before the date the CVI is issued.
Details and the official words
“Emitido dentro de los 10 (diez) días previos a la fecha de emisión del CVI por un veterinario autorizado en el país de origen”
Vaccination
Rabies vaccination
Dogs and cats must be vaccinated against rabies with a vaccine authorised by the authority of the country of origin and with immunity still valid according to the vaccine maker's validity period. If it is the first vaccination, it must have been given at least 21 days before entering Argentina.
Details and the official words
The 21-day wait only applies to a first vaccination; the plan shows it for every vaccine date, so a pet with an in-date booster can ignore it.
The original vaccination record must not be kept by the authorities: it stays with the owner.
“Cuando se trate de animales vacunados por primera vez, la vacuna debe haber sido aplicada al menos 21 (veintiún) días previos al ingreso a la República Argentina.”
Treatment
Internal and external parasite treatment
A treatment against internal and external parasites, with a product approved by the authority of the country of origin, within the 15 days before the CVI is issued (or before the passport is endorsed).
Details and the official words
“Tratamiento contra parásitos internos y externos dentro de los 15 (quince) días previos a la fecha de emisión del CVI o a la intervención del pasaporte”
Good to know
- SENASA's page cites MERCOSUR Resolution GMC 17/15 for the health requirements. Brazil has since adopted a newer MERCOSUR text (GMC 20/24), so Argentina's page may be updated: check it before you travel.
- A pet from a country or zone declared rabies-free by WOAH may enter if the issuing vet authority states this on the CVI or passport. We ask for the vaccination from every pet aged 3 months or older, the safe side.
- To take your pet back to the country it came from you need a new CVI from SENASA, unless the CVI it entered with expressly says it is valid for the return, gives a maximum period and is still valid.
- A pet that arrives without meeting the requirements can be subjected to the health measures SENASA considers appropriate, which can include delays or re-export, and the owner pays the costs.
- For a pet travelling with its owner as accompanied baggage, no prior import application to SENASA, no notice to the border post and no SENASA entry permit are needed. SENASA staff check the documents, the animal and its identity on arrival, at no charge.
- EU rules on pet travel cover moving between EU countries and entering the EU. They do not set the rules for entering a non-EU country: the destination does that. Each member state's veterinary authority issues or endorses the certificate a destination asks for. For this country we could not read an official national page that describes that procedure (the site was unreachable from our checks, blocks automated reading, or the instructions are not in the page text), so we show only the EU-wide rule below. Ask your vet or your national veterinary authority which certificate, stamp and timing your destination needs.
- Planning to bring your pet back to the EU? After a short stay in a non-EU country you can skip the 3-month wait after the rabies blood test, but only if, before you leave the EU, your pet was vaccinated against rabies, passed a successful titer test, and your vet recorded both in its EU pet passport. So do the blood test before you go.
Government fees we know of
- SENASA check of an accompanied pet at the border (no charge)0 ARS
Vet, lab and courier costs are not included. The final amount can depend on how many tests or pets are on the certificate.
Common questions
Does my dog or cat need a rabies blood test to go from Bulgaria to Argentina?
We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.
Do I need an import permit to bring my dog or cat into Argentina?
We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.
Will my dog or cat be quarantined in Argentina?
We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.
Does my dog or cat need a microchip?
We couldn't find this in our summary of the rules, but that summary is short and still under review. Ask the official authority before you rely on it.